There is quite a bit of jam band sound in the mix here. It also has some space music. There are other things, too, like vintage soul. Most everything here is pretty effective. The main problem is, after a while it starts to sound the same.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2015 Volume 2 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review

Another Day

High energy and hard edged, this is melodic at the same time. It’s got a great groove to it.

Back Inside the ShellJam band sounds are the basis of the bulk of this piece. That said, it works out to some rather space rock like stuff at times. This isn’t as well developed as the opener and not as effective.

Monkey House

The mix of jam band and space music is more prominent here. This is a stronger piece than the last one, but the whole thing is starting to get monolithic by even this early point. Still, this has a catchy hook and some good moments.

ElevatorThe keyboards on this lend some variety. It’s also a more high energy track. Still, it’s suffering from the lack of variety.

On a Holiday

Taken by itself, this is a good song. It’s just that the formula is really wearing thin by this point.

WindA slower song, that lends some definite variety. It has a rather soulful, retro sound to it, too. This is one of the highlights in part because of the variance in sound and tempo. It’s a cool groove with some bluesy moments.

Mechanical Dream

Somehow this reminds me of Hawkwind a bit. It’s definitely got a hard rocking space sound to it. It’s one of the strongest cuts here, too.

No Need to WaveI like the slide guitar on this. That manages to bring this one up from the bulk of the rest. It really manages to weave some melody throughout the tune really. This segues into the next one.

White HorsesKeyboard sounds bring this in and the piece builds out from there. It definitely gets caught in the monolithic territory, though.

The SecretThere aren’t any big changes here. This song, by itself is good. It’s just too much like the rest.